Hells Bells
by MaggieMay21
Summary: The sequel to 'Sweet Child 'O Mine' - S4 Spoilers - Sam, Dean, and Clay have been hunting together for a few months now. But Lilith is on the rise, and breaking Seals while Sam is being pulled away from his family by desire. Can they stop Lilith?
1. My Fork In The Road

_Hells Bells_

* * *

_Chapter 1_

* * *

A rather nasty succubus was stirring up trouble in a small town in Tennessee. _'Was' _being the key-word anyway.

Sam, Dean, and Sam's son Clay had been hunting together now for only about four months, but that was plenty of time to get Clay trained up.

Right after Abigail, Clay's mother had been killed, they wasted no time. They were able to hold Lilith off, but only because she hadn't made any attempt to go after them…which Sam admittedly found rather unsettling.

He and his son had an immense amount of power hidden up their sleeves, which Sam didn't even really know about till he met his son only about a few months ago.

Sam has had his powers since he was twenty two, but then it only came out in small bursts in the form of a vision, and once even a little telekinesis. But when he got a call from Abigail, his old high school girlfriend, and Clay's mother, informing him that he had a son who was a little 'strange' Sam knew immediately what that meant.

But what he didn't know was that his seven year old son was actually more powerful than him at the time…that is until Clay got a reading from a professional psychic friend of Bobby Singers, Pamela Barnes.

So Sam opened that door in his psyche for his sons' sake. He opened himself up to everything he was capable of, and in a quick, short, and dirty (and admittedly, painful) crash-course, Sam learned his full potential, and how to control it.

And then there was the matter of Lilith. Shortly after learning that she was the one holding Dean's contract, she came after them. Sadly, she was able to - in a sense, brainwash Clay.

But Sam went off with his demon friend, Ruby; and they had a private 'training' session to get a small power boost; which put him on the same playing field as his son.

They then shortly learned that Clay's mother was actually possessed by a demon and actually had been for a long time. Eight years to be exact. During the period when Clay was conceived, and so-on. The thought of that, made Sam sick to his stomach.

The night Dean's deal came due; they got a small 'present' from Lilith inviting them to Abigail's house where Clay would surely be.

When Sam, Dean, Bobby, and Ruby got there, they found that Lilith had taught Clay to control his abilities – making him all the more dangerous. So in his temporary state of insanity, he psychically attacked Dean; which Sam wasn't going to take lying down.

Eventually, Sam was able to talk his son out of his 'demon state of mind', but not after he killed Abigail.

Soon after, Lilith came for Dean's soul with Hell Hounds at her side. Sam and Clay were able to hold them off of Dean, and then Sam actually _killed_ them with his mind alone. Seeing this, Lilith fled for her life – leaving Dean behind with Sam and Clay.

All that seemed so long ago to Sam, now.

Sam sighed as those memories flooded his mind. He sat behind the wheel of the Impala while Dean slept in the passengers' seat, and Clay slept in the back.

He looked through the rearview mirror to check on his son, only to see his sleeping, and peaceful face curled around himself in the back seat.

Sam noticed that the bruise on Clay's right cheek was healing rather nicely too.

They had gotten off a hunt yesterday, where a succubus was terrorizing a small town in Tennessee's men. This succubus in particular seemed rather aggressive, as she came after Clay with a good deal of strength. She landed a powerful left hook into Clay's right cheek, catching him by surprise.

After that, Sam instructed his son to back out to let Dean and himself handle the rest. But Clay of course being _his_ son, and stubborn as any Winchester, refused.

Clay had sent a forceful, telekinetic shove toward the succubus – pinning her to the wall. The sheer power of it, sent small currents through the room which made the hairs on the back of Sam's neck stand on end. Dean didn't seem too put off by it though, so Sam couldn't help but wonder if it was only him feeling it.

The demon screamed curses at the Winchesters, before Dean plunged Ruby's demon killing knife into the bitch's gut, cause yellow bursts of light to flicker beneath her skin – signaling to them that she was indeed, dead.

Clay then let the body fall to the ground with a thud.

Sam looked at his son disapprovingly, before he and Dean went to take the body out back to burn it.

They had been trying to teach Clay to fight, and defend himself without using his abilities. He was rather good during their training sessions, but whenever they went out on an actual hunt Clay would sometimes use his abilities.

When asked about this, Clay would apologize and say it was a reflex.

Sam understood that, he really did. The mind was a muscle, and like any muscle, it needed to be exercised. So some nights when his brother and son were asleep, he would go out and flex it.

Small things though, such as lifting inanimate objects and what-not. He would invite his son along, but he usually did this late at night when he was sure his brother was asleep. And Sam knew that Clay needed his rest as well.

Sam knew how Dean felt about his and his sons abilities. He knew he didn't approve. Hell, when Dean found out that Sam saved his life from Lilith by using his abilities, he pitched a fit.

So Sam didn't even bother arguing on the matter. He only used his abilities around his brother when there was absolutely no choice.

Sam inhaled deeply as he noticed the orange tinged sky above as the sun was beginning to sink. He knew he had to stop soon for the night.

Seeing a Motel just up ahead, Sam shrugged to himself figuring it was only for the night as he noticed the sign reading 'Hourly Rates'. He then pulled into the parking lot with a sigh, and came to a halt in a vacant spot.

After he shut off the engine, Sam turned to Dean and prodded him gently.

"Hey," Sam called, "I found a place. I'll get the room."

Dean blinked himself awake, sending an annoyed glare at Sam before nodding feverishly. He yawned as his back arched to get the kinks out of his back from sleeping in the car.

"Where are we?" Dean asked groggily as he relaxed his back.

"Just outside South Dakota…we're still in Nebraska." Sam replied with a shrug.

Dean nodded in acceptance before turning his head to check on Clay. From the looks of it, he was still fast asleep with strands of his dark unkempt hair falling over his face.

Dean shook his head, and he couldn't help but chuckle to himself as he turned his attention back to his brother.

"What?" Sam asked curiously.

"That kid looks just like you." Dean replied with another chuckle.

Sam turned his head to look at his son, but then shrugged.

He didn't want to wake him, Clay really needed the sleep.

"Don't wake him." Sam whispered, "I'll carry him inside."

Dean nodded in agreement before opening the door, and climbing out of the car. Sam chanced one more glance at his son before doing the same.

**xXx**

An hour later after they were all situated in their confined room with only two beds, Sam found himself to be wide awake, antsy even.

He looked toward the bed closest to the door and saw that Dean was fast asleep again. And on the other bed, Clay lay still asleep; having never waked up after Sam carried his son into the room.

The sun had now gone down completely, and not wanting to wake neither his brother nor his son, Sam didn't turn any light on, leaving himself in total darkness. The only light shining in the room was the ever present crescent moon shining through the open window.

Sam paced the small room back and forth slowly, keeping his emotions under lock and key so his son wouldn't sense his restlessness and wake up.

Sam's head suddenly snapped to his thigh as he felt his phone vibrate in his pocket. He sighed to himself as he dug in his jeans pocket to retrieve his phone.

Finally in his grasp, he pulled his phone from his pocket and saw that it was a text message from a nameless number. He knew who the number belonged to though. He just didn't keep it under a name just in case his brother ever got a hold of his phone. He knew if Dean saw that name in his phone, he would ask questions.

Questions, Sam didn't want to answer.

_"Meet me outside!" _The message read.

Sam nodded to himself, and shut his phone before shoving it back into his pocket.

He chanced a glance at Dean and Clay once more, and cast out his senses. He was relieved to find that they were both really fast asleep.

With that, Sam opened the front door and stepped outside into the bitter cold. He locked the door behind him, and then turned around to face a petite woman with long brown hair, and piercing brown eyes. She wore dark, tight fitting jeans with the hem tucked beneath her black boots which matched her black leather jacket.

She stood there with her arms crossed over her chest, with a cocky smile on her face.

Sam stepped away from the door, and offered the girl a half smile.

"What's going on, Ruby?" Sam asked seriously.

He had been keeping in touch with her since the incident with Lilith. She had shown him a way to strengthen his abilities, and frankly it scared the hell out of him.

And even though he only did it once, he couldn't help but wonder what it would be like to do it again. He was already powerful…but what would _more_ power do to him?

He knew it was wrong though, just on principal alone. And that was something he never wanted to do again.

"I've been hearing things." Ruby said rather vaguely with a small shrug as her smile slid from her face.

"Okay, what kind of things?" Sam asked seriously, trying to cut to the point.

"About Lilith." Ruby explained pointedly.

"What about her?" Sam asked, suddenly interested.

He wanted to take this bitch out. She came after Dean, and his child. Sam wanted to teach her a lesson she won't soon forget.

"She's cooking up something big. _Apocalyptic_ big."

"Like what?" Sam demanded.

"Can't say for sure." Ruby admitted, "But you have to be ready."

"I think I'm ready for her." Sam replied with a cocky grin.

"I doubt it," Ruby scoffed, "her numbers have tripled since the last time you saw her. She's got an army at her beck and call, Sam. You're not ready for that, yet!"

"So what do you suggest I do?" Sam asked curiously. He knew where this was going.

"You _know_ what you gotta do." Ruby quipped in a matter-of-fact tone.

"No," Sam replied pointedly as he shook his head, "I'm not doing that ever again. That was a onetime deal out of desperation."

"And you're not desperate now?" Ruby snapped, "That knife won't do much against Lilith, and you don't have the Colt. So you got any other bright ideas?"

Sam knew she was right, there seemed to be no other way. But he didn't want to do this, anything but this.

"She'll come after Dean again," Ruby continued, "And you think she'll fail a second time? And when she has Dean in Hell, she'll take Clay again."

Sam's head snapped in Ruby's direction upon hearing Clay's name. Again, he knew she was right…but this was so wrong.

"Well, I won't have to like it." Sam muttered in defeat.

"No," Ruby agreed as a smile spread across her features, "you don't."

* * *

_Just as I promised, the sequel to 'Sweet Child 'O Mine'. _

_Tell me what you guys think! Enjoy! :D_


	2. Secrets Don't Make Friends

_Chapter 2_

* * *

By the early morning, Sam, Dean and Clay were all wide awake – despite Sam only getting a couple hours of sleep. He had too much to think about today, which meant he had to stay on his guard or else his son would immediately catch that something was amiss.

By noon time, they were all cleaned, dressed, and fed so by approximately two, they were back on the road with Dean behind the wheel headed to South Dakota to meet up with Bobby.

Sam sat in the passengers' seat, looking out the window absently as the scenery just seemed to fly by. He wished that just once, he didn't have the end of the world sitting on his shoulders.

Clay sat in the back seat, directly behind Dean. But his sharp blue eyes were trained on the back of his fathers' head. He didn't need empathy to know there was something bothering Sam. He just wished that just for a second, Sam would lower his guard so Clay could see what was wrong.

Suddenly Dean took in a sharp frustrated breath, and eyed his brother out of the corner of his eye before looking at Clay through the rearview mirror.

"What's with you two?" Dean demanded sounding annoyed.

Sam's head snapped in Dean's direction with wide eyes looking curious.

"What?" Sam wondered out loud.

"You two seem out of it today…what's going on?" Dean explained.

Clay shrugged as he turned his eyes to the back of Dean's head.

"I was just wondering the same thing." Clay admitted.

"Sam?" Dean prodded impatiently.

Sam sighed, and decided it be best to at least throw them a bone.

"I got a visit last night," Sam admitted as he turned his gaze to the road ahead of them, "from Ruby."

Dean turned his head toward Sam with wide questioning eyes, before turning his gaze back to the road.

"And?" Dean demanded.

"And…" Sam continued hesitantly, "she said that Lilith's finally on the move."

"Well gee Sam, when were you gonna tell me this?" Dean snapped angrily, his voice growing louder with every word.

"I was gonna wait till we got to Bobby's!" Sam defended, "I didn't see the point in repeating myself."

"Well for something this big, I'm sure you would have gotten over it!" Dean argued.

Sam shook his head, and turned his gaze back out his window.

"Did she say anything else?" Clay interjected, sounding interested.

Dean turned his eyes to Sam again quickly, signaling that he was wondering the same thing.

"No, that's it." Sam lied.

Dean exhaled sharply, obviously deep in thought for a couple of moments before he answered.

"She didn't say where Lilith is? What she's doing?" Dean prodded.

"No," Sam answered as he shook his head, "she just said that this is apocalyptic big."

Dean swore under his breath, but didn't say anything else on the subject. He was angry, and Sam could feel it. If it weren't for his wall he had built in his mind, his brothers' fury surely would have knocked him out.

Instead, it only felt like a static current flowing from Dean's presence. It left an odd taste on Sam's tongue, but he didn't say anything on the matter.

Clay offered a tiny shrug in Sam's direction, but said nothing…out loud.

He attempted to open up a connection with his fathers' mind, but his walls were too well guarded. But Sam could feel what Clay was doing, it was like someone knocking on a door. It made Sam flinch slightly at the sudden intrusion, but he alowed his son, nonetheless. Even though he kept everything else kept under tight lock.

_"Is that really all she said?" _Clay asked without moving his lips, an almost accusing look plastered on his face as he glared at the back of Sam's head.

_"That's all she said, of importance." _Sam said vaguely.

_"Why aren't you letting me in?" _Clay questioned, sounding a little annoyed.

_"Because, this is my personal space!" _Sam snapped, angrily.

Clay looked taken aback for a moment as his eyes widened. Sam was suddenly shutting him out, and he wasn't sure why. Normally he would let Clay get at least an inkling of a reading on him, just to assure his son that everything was okay.

But now, Clay couldn't get anything.

_"I think you're lying." _Clay accused blatantly.

_"Beg your pardon?" _

_"You're lying." _Clay repeated sounding annoyed, _"you've never shut me out completely. Something's not right." _

Sam drew in a deep calming breath, but kept his eyes fixed on the scenery outside his window so he didn't alert Dean.

_"Listen Clay," _Sam began a little more calmly, _"I know we haven't known each other for very long…but through all these months…have I ever done wrong by you? Have I ever done anything to intentionally put you in harms way?"_

There was a long pause, as Clay searched his mind for an answer. His wide blue eyes were still fixed on the back of Sam's head as he ran through the last few months through his memory.

_"No." _Clay admitted sounding defeated.

_"Then please," _Sam begged, _"just let me worry about this. If it were something huge, You and Dean would know about it…I swear." _

He was lying, and hating himself for it. He just lied to his son. Flat out. This was huge, but he knew this wasn't something Dean wouldn't permit, and it would be setting a bad example for his son. But this was for the greater good…wasn't it?

Accepting the lie, Clay withdrew from his fathers' mind albeit hesitantly.

The second Sam felt Clay go back into his own head, he closed off the connection as quickly as possible. He didn't want to scare Clay anymore than he already was.

**xXx**

By approximately five a.m., they finally made it to Bobby's. The car ride was extremely long and dull the rest of the way, Sam wouldn't talk to neither Dean or Clay. He was lost in his own thoughts.

When they got inside with all their belongings slung over their shoulders, Bobby greeted them enthusiastically and ordered them to toss their bags in the library – which they did happily.

When the bags were tossed, Sam, Dean, and Clay followed Bobby into kitchen where he got them both Sam and Dean beers, and Clay a soda.

Bobby asked them how their succubus hunt went, and Dean went into telling Bobby about how it went down. Bobby then offered Clay an amused grin.

"That's one hell of a shiner, kid." Bobby commented, referring to the bruise on Clay's cheek.

Clay smiled back, but didn't reply as he took a sip of his soda.

"How was the drive?" Bobby asked out of worry, noting the undeniable tension between the three of them. He couldn't help but notice that it seemed to be Dean and Clay against Sam.

Sam just stood there with that sour-lemon look on his face, as he refused to look his brother and son in the eyes.

Dean shrugged as he lifted the green bottle to his lips and took a swig.

"Smooth." Clay responded hotly before taking his bottle to his lips as well.

"Cute," Bobby quipped sarcastically as he rolled his eyes, "I mean, what's going on with you three?"

"I dunno, Sam you wanna take this one?" Dean asked purposely putting his brother in an uncomfortable spot.

Sam rolled his eyes with annoyance as he swished the beer in his bottle around absently.

"Dean thinks I was keeping something from them, but I was just waiting till we got here…because I didn't want to have to repeat myself." Sam responded, keeping his eyes trained on Dean, though he avoided his brothers' eyes.

Dean shrugged, before sipping at his beer again.

"Okay…" Bobby said simply, urging him to continue.

With that, Sam told Bobby about what Ruby told him the night before. But like with Dean and Clay, he didn't necessarily get into everything. He pulled a card from his dads' deck, and kept them on a 'need to know' basis.

When he finished speaking, he took a swig of his beer uncomfortably. Bobby scrubbed his hand across his face as he took in a deep breath.

"We knew this was gonna happen sooner or later." He commented, "But your demon friend unfortunately isn't much help. She couldn't even tell us where Lilith is?"

Sam shrugged, as he pulled his bottle away from his face.

"Doesn't matter," Sam muttered as he shook his head, "she'll pop up eventually."

"True," Bobby replied with a deep sigh, "but I'd feel better if we knew what she was cookin' up before goin' after her half-cocked."

"What do you suggest we do?" Dean asked his surrogate father curiously.

"All we can do is look for demon signs…find out where she is. But I'm thinkin' we gotta lay back and let her make the first move." Bobby said sounding a regretful.

"So she kills someone...maybe more, and we just sit here and do nothing?" Dean asked angrily.

"You wanna go in with no plan, without all the details, and end up gettin' yourself killed?" Bobby snapped.

Dean took in a deep frustrated breath, but didn't argue the matter any further as he sipped his beer again.

"Just for the record," he commented out loud, "I really hate this plan."

"Who don't?" Bobby asked with a shrug, "But it's the only one that'll keep us alive."

Clay kept his eyes fixed on Sam still, begging his father to just openly admit what he was hiding. Whatever it was it couldn't be that bad, could it? But Sam kept his eyes on his beer bottle, and every once in a while he would chance a quick glance at his brother, but nothing more.

Whatever he was hiding, it was obviously bigger than Sam was letting on.

**xXx**

Later on, when the sun had gone down and his brother his nephew, and Bobby went to bed. Dean sat in the kitchen at the table, slightly tired but awake just the same.

He sat up thinking about Sam, and what was going on with his little brother. What was with him all of a sudden? Yesterday, Sam was perfectly fine and normal, but today he was acting odd. He seemed put out, and a little depressed even.

Was it something Ruby said? Did that mean Sam lied to him, and Ruby did tell him other things?

Dean sighed as those thoughts crossed his mind, what could be so bad that Sam would lie to his own brother? How would Dean even know for sure that Sam was lying?

Clay, he thought simply. If anyone could get inside Sam's head…literally…it would be Clay. Dean didn't like the idea of talking his nephew into invading his fathers' mind, but something was wrong here. This couldn't be good.

Dean was suddenly snapped out of his thoughts when he fuzzy sound invaded his eardrums from the next room. His eyebrows knit together in confusion as he realized that no one was awake, so where was the noise coming from?

"Hello?" Dean whispered out, trying to get the invading presence attention in the next room without waking anyone who was asleep.

There was no reply.

Dean stood from the table slowly, his guard suddenly up and ready for anything as he stalked toward the threshold between the kitchen and the living room without making any noise.

Upon reaching the threshold, his eyebrows shot up in confusion. No one was in the living room, yet the television was on a snowy sort of channel, which was where the fuzzy noise was coming from.

No one was there…how'd the television get turned on?

Shrugging, Dean strode over to the television and turned it off without thinking.

He whirled around with wide eyes, scanning the room for any visable threats. He couldn't see anything, but he knew he wasn't alone.

Just then, the same fuzzy sound burst through the silence causing Dean to snap to the television's attention which was now on again with the weird snowy scene.

Dean was then about to turn the television off yet again, when a truly _aweful_ sound came seemingly out of nowhere, far surpassing the fuzziness of the out of service television.

It was a loud screach starting in low, but then coming in low and high pitched.

Dean made a desperate grab for his ears to try and block the terrible noise out, but it only seemed to grow louder.

To Dean's surprise, the glass of the television suddenly burst outward with a soft _'pop'_ showering him in shards as he crashed to his knees.

There was a flash of a bright white light above him, but it only lasted a moment as the living room light suddenly burst like the television had, also sparying Dean with its uneven, aggressive shards.

Dean screamed, and hunched in on himself on the floor trying desperately to block the impossibly loud screach out, but it only seemed to get louder.

He felt a sudden warm liquid gather in his hands which were still covering his ears, and Dean knew that his ears were bleeding.

But then, just as suddenly as it had started…it stopped.

Dean stopped screaming, and cracked his eyes open as he heaved in deep pants, gasping for air. His ears still rang violently, he noticed – he knew it would take a while for that to subside.

"D-Dean?" A soft voice came from across the room.

Dean opened his eyes all the way, and arched his neck just enough to see across the room toward where he heard the voice.

He didn't want to chance pulling his hands away from his ears just yet, so he could only imagine how he must have looked while he was still huddled on the floor.

Across the room, at the bottom of the staircase stood a slightly winded Clay. He looked around the room with wide eyes as he took in the scene around him.

Dean hadn't noticed it at first, but now that he was looking for what was drawing his nephews' attention, he couldn't suppress his gasp.

Broken glass littered the floor around their feet coming from not only the television and the lights, but the windows and mirror as well. Everything glass, was now in pieces on the floor. Dean hadn't heard most of it, only the horrible screaching and the television.

He then looked back up to Clay, who was now looking back at him looking horrified.

"What…the hell…was that?" Clay asked in shaky nervousness.

* * *

_To anyone who's seen season 4 know where this is going, but I'm me...and I'm adding my own flavor to the mix. :D_


	3. Castiel

_Chapter 3_

* * *

Dean groaned loudly as his cramped muscles and various cuts and scrapes protested his movements as he slowly made his way to his feet. He kept his eyes trained on Clay curiously, who was looking slightly out of breath and flustered.

"What the hell was that?" Clay asked again, his voice sounding sturdier.

When Dean was finally on both feet, he wavered for a moment as he collected his bearings. How could he answer that question?

"I-I don't know." Dean replied honestly, swallowing down the bile that threatened to spill.

Suddenly there was the sound of hurried footsteps coming from the upstairs where Clay stood. He turned his head to his left and peered down the hallway as Sam and Bobby flanked to his sides.

"What the hell happened?" Bobby asked wide-eyed as he glanced down the stairs quickly and saw the broken glass all over the floor by Dean's feet.

"I don't know." Dean repeated, taking in a deep steadying breath.

Dean looked up and saw Sam kneeling next to his son giving him a worried once-over. When Clay seemed to be okay, Sam stood and quickly ran down the stairs. He then stopped abruptly on the bottom step when he too saw the broken glass laying askew around Dean's feet.

"Did you guys hear that?" Dean asked nervously, his ears were still ringing from the loud intrusion. It was hard to believe they _hadn't_ heard it.

"All I heard was breaking glass, boy!" Bobby replied as he rushed down the stairs, ignoring the broken glass laying everywhere.

Dean was taken aback. They hadn't heard the screeching? How was that possible?

"What the hell did you do?" Bobby prodded, his eyes staring Dean down accusingly.

"You think I did this?" Dean asked, suddenly annoyed.

Bobby simply shrugged with his wide eyes still fixed on Dean.

"I didn't do this, Bobby." Dean defended, his voice rising in anger.

"You were the only one down here is all I'm saying." Bobby argued submissively, "The doors and windows were salted, and I've got charms stashed all over the place. I don't know what else could've done it."

"Well it wasn't me!" Dean snapped, "I-it was some sort of presence…I felt it. Right before everything exploded, I was sitting in the kitchen. Then the television turned itself on. I went to go turn it off, and then there was this…loud…_really_ loud screech."

"I didn't hear that." Sam interjected.

"I did." Clay chimed in sheepishly.

Dean, Sam, and Bobby's eyes all quickly averted to Clay who was taken aback by the sudden attention.

"That's what woke me up." Clay muttered.

"Okay." Bobby nodded slowly, as if trying to piece this all together.

"But what does this mean?" Dean asked suddenly worried, "Are we thinking demon?"

"I don't know," Sam replied with shrug, "I mean what kind of demon in immune to salt-lines?"

"Well I don't know, Sam!" Dean snapped, "But I cant think of anything else it could be!"

"Did you get some kinda reading on it, kid?" Bobby asked Clay with a small nod in his direction.

Clay shook his head slowly.

"Whatever it was…it was _strong_." Clay confirmed with an exhausted sigh.

Suddenly there was a strange wind that picked up within the house, causing all the loose papers to skitter around the room absently, and the dusty old books blew open – their pages flipping hurriedly.

To Dean and Bobby it might have only felt like a strong wind caused by the broken windows, but Sam and Clay shivered as Goosebumps crept up their arms telling them that this wasn't something normal.

And then, just as suddenly as the wind had picked up – it stopped. All the papers fluttered to the ground, and the books stopped flipping their pages.

Sam shuddered involuntarily, resulting in Clay snapping his wide bright blue eyes in his fathers' direction.

Sam felt the familiar soft prodding in his mind as his son tried to gain entry. Sighing in defeat, Sam opened himself up only a little so he and his son could speak in silence while he still remained somewhat guarded.

_"Did you feel that just now?" _Clay asked worriedly.

Sam only nodded in confirmation, but he didn't look his son in the eyes. He didn't want to tip Dean and Bobby off to their private conversation.

_"What the heck is this thing?" _Clay continued.

_"I'm not sure." _Sam replied honestly, _"But whatever it is…I've never faced anything like it."_

**xXx**

Sam, Dean, Bobby, and even Clay spent the rest of the night cleaning up the mess that the presence had left. They boarded up the windows, and swept up all the glass that lay littered on the ground.

By late morning, the house looked somewhat like its old dusty self.

Bobby wasn't too thrilled about having to replace the windows, lights, and television, but he didn't complain. Instead he went into his library, and attempted to figure out what it is they were dealing with.

After a few hours of finding absolutely nothing, Bobby came up with another idea.

"We could check with Pamela." Bobby suggested with a shrug.

"I dunno, Bobby." Dean sighed tiredly, "If Sam and Short-Stuff over here couldn't sense anything about this – what makes you think Pamela can?"

Clay scowled at his uncle for the nickname, but didn't protest.

"Maybe we just need a fresh set of eyes. Something this strong…maybe she's heard the other side talking." Bobby said simply.

"It's worth a shot." Sam chimed in with a shrug of his own.

"And whatever this thing is," Bobby said in a low serious tone, his eyes trained on Dean, "it seems to only want to make contact or whatever with you…or the kid."

Both Dean and Clay rolled their eyes. They knew Bobby was right, and they didn't really have any other choice.

Dean didn't have any problem with Pamela, but he wasn't sure what she could possibly do. Clay on the other hand thought she was a bit of a joke.

The last time they encountered Pamela, she tried to teach Sam to better control his abilities. Instead, she wound up putting him in a coma, trapped inside violent vision after violent vision.

Needless to say, Clay wasn't really in Pamela's fan club.

Getting all the approval he needed, Bobby walked into the kitchen where his chorded telephone hung on the wall and picked up the receiver before dialing her number.

**xXx**

Later that day when the sun was beginning to sink, the four boys pulled up in front of a rather normal looking home which they knew to be Pamela's.

After hanging up the phone with her, she told Bobby to bring the boys on over and she would see what she could do to help.

Bobby got out of the drivers' side of his muscle car, as Sam, Dean, and Clay climbed out of the Impala.

With Bobby taking the lead, he opened the front gate, and walked up the walkway to the front step. Clay closed the gate behind him, and took up the rear of the group.

The boys treaded up the creaky front steps slowly, and came to a halt at the front door. Bobby knocked on the closed screen door a couple times before the large door swung open, revealing a rather excited looking Pamela.

She opened the screen door, and stepped outside with a large smile on her face as she began to laugh.

"Bobby!" She exclaimed as she swept him into a large bear hug.

"Pamela." Bobby grunted beneath her strength as she lifted him off his feet.

Clay, Dean, and Sam looked at each other in confusion and surprise, but didn't dare say anything.

When Pamela finally released him, she took a step back to get a good look at the boys with her arms crossed over her chest.

"Sam…Clay…you boys seem to finally have a hang on things. Good for you." Pamela said with an approving nod.

Clay rolled his eyes, but Sam nodded in understanding accepting the compliment silently.

"So, you get anything?" Bobby asked curiously.

Pamela looked over at Dean and offered a wink. He looked at her for a moment, slightly taken aback, but flattered and slightly aroused nonetheless.

She then opened the screen door and the large front door and held it open for the boys to enter. Once filed in the house, Pamela closed both doors and turned to look at her guests.

"Well…I Ouija'd my way through a dozen spirits." Pamela responded vaguely, "No one seems to know about any sort of presence like the one you described."

"So what's next?" Bobby asked, seeming a little disappointed.

"Séance I think." Pamela replied with a shrug.

"You're not gonna summon the damn thing here, are you?" Bobby asked suddenly a little alarmed.

"No," Pamela responded with a chuckle as she unfolded her arms and walked past him slowly, "I just wanna get a sneak peak…kinda like a crystal ball without the crystal."

She walked passed Sam and Dean, offering them both a genuinely excited smile before stopping in front of a large cabinet and squatting down so that she could gather some candles for the séance.

Dean looked after her, as his gaze came to an abrupt halt at her low riding jeans revealing her tattoo on her lower back reading 'Jesse Forever' in cursive.

Dean nudged his brother, and nodded in the direction of the attractive psychic.

Sam looked at the tattoo his brother was staring at, he shook his head with a smile on his face. What was Dean thinking?

"So who's Jesse?" Dean asked the psychic. His tone of voice, clearly suggested that it was a line.

Pamela laughed, and turned her head toward Dean batting her lashes.

"Well it wasn't forever." She replied mirthfully.

"His loss." Dean teased flirtatiously.

Pamela stood upright with a handful of white candles, and walked over to Dean while she glanced down at his crotch before looking him in the eye.

"Could be your gain." She responded before turning to put the candles on the table.

Sam and Dean turned away from her quickly. Dean looked rather pleased with himself, while Sam was shaking his head at his brothers' undying libido.

"Yeah, she's gonna eat you alive." Sam muttered with a slight chuckle.

Pamela came rushing back toward the brothers' with a wide smile on her face as she turned her attention to Sam.

"You're invited too, Grumpy." She teased before walking off.

"You are not invited!" Dean whispered to Sam sternly, pointing a finger in Sam's face.

Clay, having overheard the whole thing looked sickened by the conversation, and walked over to see what Uncle Bobby was doing. That seemed like a safe thing to do.

**xXx**

Moments later, the boys were seated at the table which was covered by a black table cloth with a white pentagram sketched on it. Lit candles sat on the table, in the middle of the design on the table cloth.

The room was completely dark, save for the lit candles in the middle of the table.

"Okay," Pamela said calmly, "take each others' hands."

Sam raised his arms, and laid them on the table gently – as did everyone else seated at the table. He took his brothers' right hand with his left, and took his sons' left with his right.

"Close your eyes." Pamela commanded softly as her eyelids closed.

Everyone obeyed, even Clay – but not before rolling his eyes.

They sat there in silence for a moment or two before Pamela began to chant softly in English.

"I invoke, conjure, and command you – show me your face." She repeated, sounding completely monotone.

Suddenly there was silence and her eyebrow quirked in interest.

"Castiel?" She questioned.

At the sound of her changing the routine, Sam, Dean, Clay, and Bobby all opened their eyes to take a glance at Pamela whose eyes were still shut.

Suddenly the television behind Pamela's seat turned on to a staticy gray channel, as it did the night this presence came after Dean.

"No, sorry Castiel – I don't scare easy." Pamela replied to the seemingly one-sided conversation with a certain defiance.

"Castiel?" Dean questioned, his eyes fixed on the psychic.

She turned her head toward Dean, but didn't open her eyes.

"It's name," she explained hurriedly, "it's whispering to me – warning me to turn back."

"I _command_ you – show me your face!" She tried again more forcefully.

Suddenly, the room around them was engulfed in a mini-earthquake causing the boys to stare at the psychic with her closed eyes in curiosity and worry.

"Maybe we should stop." Bobby suggested sounding a little paniced.

"I've almost got it!" Pamela snapped back, still keeping her concentration.

"I command you show me your face!" Pamela yelled louder.

"This isn't a good idea!" Clay snapped worriedly as he eyed the candles in the middle of the table as they began to wobble along with their surroundings.

Pamela ignored the child and yelled one last time.

"Show me your face, _now_!"

Then suddenly, the flame in the candles sky-rocketed as if someone had thrown lighter fluid on them to encourage their growth.

But more alarming was the sounds of Pamela screaming in agony.

The boys watched the psychic helplessly as her eyes were engulfed in a white light that only lasted a moment. When the light was suddenly extinguished, blood poured freely from her empty eye-sockets.

Thinking quickly, Bobby stood and made a grab for Pamela as she lost her balance and fell out of her chair – landing in his awaiting arms.

He knelt on the ground, holding her upright as Sam, Dean, and Clay gathered around to make sure she was alright.

Her eyelids were red, and black showing off how horribly burnt they were. Then Pamela opened her eyelids to reveal…nothing.

This creature burned her eyes clear out of her skull.

"I can't see!" Pamela sobbed helplessly.

"Call nine-one-one!" Bobby ordered whoever.

Sam immediately made a run for the kitchen toward the chordless telephone to dial for help.

"I can't see!" Pamela yelled again.

* * *

_I hope all of you had a Happy Holiday. I'm back from my vacation, so my updates should be a tad bit faster. Haha. _


	4. Interrogation

_Chapter 4_

* * *

After being up all night long waiting for Bobby to get back to them with information about how Pamela was doing from the hospital; Sam, Dean, and Clay decided it be best to get some breakfast in a nearby diner early that morning.

As they walked into the diner, with Sam bringing up the rear; his cellphone went off loudly from his pants pocket.

Dean looked back at his brother curiously, staring past his nephew who was also looking up at Sam questioningly.

Sam dug around in his pocket for a moment before retrieving his phone. He gave his brother an apologetic glance, and answered the phone quickly, holding it up to his ear.

As Sam walked away with his phone to his ear, Dean and Clay decided it would be best to go ahead and get a table.

Moments later, Sam went back inside the diner with his phone tucked safely back in his pocket. He found where Dean and Clay were seated, and sat in the booth next to his son across from Dean.

"I went ahead and ordered for you." Dean told his brother with clear exhaustion on his face.

Sam nodded in thanks with a sigh.

"Who was that?" Dean asked Sam, his eyes looking from his nephew to his brother.

"Bobby…they just moved Pamela out of ICU. She'll be alright." Sam informed.

"And blind…because of us." Dean said guiltily.

"I said that it was a bad idea." Clay muttered, as he looked down at the place settings in front of him.

Dean shot Clay a warning glance, but didn't reply.

"I'm just saying!" Clay defended.

"So what's our next move?" Sam asked curiously with a visible eye-roll.

"We summon this thing." Dean replied bluntly, his eyes locked on his brothers'.

"Are you nuts?" Sam asked, wide-eyed.

"Dean...that's a terrible idea." Clay said with a stifled chuckle, he obviously thought Dean was kidding.

Dean looked down at his nephew with a hard look as he caught the tone of his voice.

"I'm serious." Dean said calmly, "We have a name…'Castiel' or whatever…we use the right mojo, we can summon him and bring him right to us."

Sam looked at his brother with disbelief clear on his face as he leaned back on the padded seat in the booth.

"Pam took a _peek_ at this thing and her _eyes_ burned outta her skull, and you wanna have a face to face with this thing?" Sam asked seriously.

"Hunting's gonna be hard when you're blind." Clay teased.

Dean shot Clay another warning glance, and again Clay backed off.

"You got any other ideas?" Dean asked Sam with a hint of excitement in his voice.

"I've been looking around," Sam began tiredly as he looked over at the counter where the skinny short-haired waitress was talking to the cook through the little window. He looked back over to his brother when he was sure no one was eavesdropping.

"Demon signs all over this town. I don't know why, but something big's going down here. I say we find these sons of bitches and talk to them…someone's gotta know something about something."

Just as the last sentence poured from his mouth, the waitress appeared holding three plates, one in each hand, and a third resting in the crook of her left arm. After skillfully placing the plates on the table in front of the boys, she pulled up a chair from the table next to their booth, and took a seat at their table.

"You angling for a tip?" Dean asked the waitress with a flirtatious smirk.

Sam and Clay watched the waitress with disbelief, but both were unable to keep the smiles from their faces at Dean's reaction.

"I'm sorry," she said in a deep voice, "I thought you were looking for us."

The boys' smiles slid from their faces as the woman's brown eyes flashed black. But it wasn't just her, the black eyes belonging to the cook as well as three other customers stared at Sam, Dean, and Clay intently.

An older man stood from his seat at the counter and walked toward the front door before locking it.

The waitress's eyes faded back to the human's natural color as she directed a hard look toward Clay with a tiny smile on her face.

"Cute kid." She commented almost playfully.

Sam made a small motion to hide Clay from the demons' view. It was a feeble action he knew, but it was instinctual.

"Aw," the demon said with a phony whine, "Daddy doesn't like us talking."

"Shut your mouth." Sam snapped spitefully.

The demon smiled at Sam before turning her attention toward Dean. He offered her a fake and confident smile.

"What's following you?" The demon asked him seriously.

All the demons in the room along with Sam and Clay had their eyes turned to Dean. On the surface he didn't seem to mind, but he knew how dangerous the situation really was.

"I don't know." Dean admitted, "But you do, don't you?"

"If I knew, I wouldn't be asking you." The demon replied with hard hatred on her puppets' face.

Clay looked up at his father curiously, but didn't say anything. Sam had his attention turned to his brother and the demon.

Dean offered a small chuckle, before replying.

"No…I'm guessing at your pay-grade they don't tell you squat." Dean said to the demon with great mirth showing on his face.

"You watch your tone with me, boy. I'll drag you to Hell myself." She threatened.

Sam adjusted himself in his seat, getting ready in case he had to jump from his seat. He felt adrenaline pump through his veins – pushing the power that saved Dean in the first place. He became lightheaded, and gave a threatening look toward the demon.

This didn't go unnoticed by Dean, as he held up a hand. He was signaling to Sam to let it be. He had it under control.

Dean then turned his still confident eyes back on the demon.

"No you won't." Dean challenged, "Because if you were, you would have done it already. Truth is you're scared…you don't know who's chasing me or why. But you _do_ know that they're a lot stronger than you."

"Is that so?" The demon asked with a half-smile.

Dean nodded in response, before answering.

"Maybe it was some…turbo-charged spirit, or Godzilla." Dean joked.

The demon didn't answer; she only continued to glare at Dean with certain intensity where under normal circumstances would have made Dean cringe.

Dean understood that he won this round with these demons. The others behind the waitress also had hard eyes trained on him, but he ignored it.

"Go ahead," Dean egged on, "send me to Hell…but it seems this demon or whatever wants me for something. So don't come crying to me when whoever this is shows up on your front porch with some Vaseline and a fire hose."

"I'm gonna reach down your throat, and rip out your lungs." The demon threatened absently. She knew that Dean was right, but she would never admit it.

Dean then reached over toward the demon with a half smile on his face. His eyes trained on hers for a moment, before he smacked her square across the face.

Sam and Clay looked at Dean with wide eyes. What was he thinking?

And just as they were thinking, Dean couldn't have possibly egged the demon on like that – Dean reached over and smacked her again.

The most surprising part was that the demon did nothing. She didn't lift a finger to defend herself.

"That's what I thought." Dean said with a satisfied smile.

He then turned to Sam and Clay and stood from the booth, Sam and Clay following suit.

Dean looked down at the demon as the smile on his face faded abruptly. He pulled his wallet from his pocket, and pulled out a small wad of bills before tossing them on the table.

He then wordlessly strode over to where Sam and Clay stood by the locked door. The demon who had locked the door fumbled with the keys for a moment before finally unlocking the door, letting them go.

**xXx**

Out in the parking lot, Sam, Dean, and Clay walked hurriedly to the Impala. None of them bothered looking behind them.

"Holy crap that was close." Dean said sounding a bit winded as his nerves finally kicked in.

"We're not just gonna leave them in there, are we Dean?" Sam asked angrily.

"They're scared." Dean noted.

"We gotta take them, Dean. They're dangerous." Sam remarked.

"No they're scared," Dean argued, "scared of whatever is following us."

Sam wasn't so happy about leaving the demons in there. Normally, he wouldn't care so much. But he had felt the strong tingle of power just beneath his skin. The same tingle he felt when he saved Dean from the Hell Hounds. He was ready to kill those demons. Then Dean told him not to.

The adrenaline was built, and he felt his body throb angrily at not being able to release that energy. He stifled a growl of frustration, but the throb wouldn't go down.

But Sam knew what he had to do now. He was going to go back to the diner tonight after Dean and Clay went to bed, and kill these demons. He had to.

But he had to make a call first.

* * *

_Sorry the update took so long, guys. My muse is going in 3 different directions. So I'm updating as quick as my mind allows. Haha. The next chapter should be a bit more interesting, but chapter 6 should be better. :D_

_Show some Kim Manners love today, guys. I can't believe it's been a year. :( _


	5. Unappointed Guardians

_Chapter 5_

* * *

The remainder of the day, Sam and Dean researched the name 'Castiel' in demonology but found nothing. Sam looked on the internet, while Dean checked the books at the library.

Clay was with his father and brother reading up on something entirely different. Since Sam and Dean wouldn't let him research this case, figuring it was far too dangerous for someone his age, and of course his lack of experience to get caught up in something like this.

So Clay sat among the long tables across from his uncle with his nose buried in a book about psychics. Though both he and his father knew how to use their abilities, and even how they got them; Clay wanted to know if there were any other psychics on any sort of record as strong as he and Sam.

He wasn't surprised when he didn't find any.

All he found were a few names of people who could sense energies in a room, sometimes sense what others were thinking, and even a girl who had a little bit of telekinesis…but not strong enough to fling an entire person into a wall – maybe she could move a salt shaker.

It seemed he and Sam were unique.

Normally Clay wouldn't mind that. In fact he'd be a little smug about such an idea. But the only other psychic who was that strong (if not stronger) was his father…who seemed to be closing up on him.

Sam raised his head from the computer screen to glance over at Clay and Dean. They both seemed busy reading their books, but something about his sons' posture bugged him.

His shoulders were hunched, and his face was contorted in an almost pensive way. Clay looked like he carried the weight of the world on his shoulders.

Sam took in a deep breath and pushed his mind outwards to his son, and gave a mental nudge. Clay looked startled for a moment, his bright blue eyes scanning the library for some sort of intrusion before calming down and letting Sam in.

_"You okay, kid?" _Sam asked his son without uttering a word.

_"Fine." _Clay quipped back defensively as he looked back down into his book.

_"You don't look it." _Sam commented, _"Wanna head back to the motel?"_

_"You and Dean are working a case…you know since you won't let me help or anything." _Clay said grudgingly.

Sam rolled his eyes, and turned his gaze back to the computer screen so he didn't attract Dean's attention.

_"This is too dangerous for you, Clay." _Sam argued.

_"So I can't even help with the research? Is _research_ too dangerous too? Should I wait in the car?" _Clay snapped sarcastically.

_"Just don't worry about it!" _Sam snapped with an eye-roll. Should he be concerned that Clay seems to be turning into a mini-_Dean_? Sam shuddered at the thought.

_"Is that all that's wrong? I'm not letting you help?" _Sam tried again.

"I dunno!" Clay said aloud, startling both Sam and Dean into looking at him with wide-eyes, "I mean if you don't have to give away your secrets, why should I have to give away mine?"

Clay slammed the book in front of him shut without even touching it, causing Dean to flinch. He then made his way to his feet and turned to his wide-eyed uncle.

"I'll be in the car." Clay said a bit more calmly.

With that, he stormed out the front door of the library without even sparing his father a passing glance.

Dean turned a curious gaze to Sam.

"What was that about?" Dean prodded.

"He's upset…he thinks I'm keeping something from him." Sam explained curtly.

Dean's eyebrows quirked, but he didn't reply. The kid had been braver than him, he had to give him that. He'd known for a little while that Sam was keeping something from them too, but hadn't really confronted him about it.

Instead he just looked back down to his Demonology text book quietly.

After a few more seconds or reading, Sam's eyebrows skyrocketed.

"I think I have something." Sam said loud enough for Dean to hear.

Dean's head snapped up toward Sam curiously.

"Really?" He pried.

"I think so." Sam replied with a nod.

Sam then hit the 'print' button, and got up from his desk chair toward the corner of the room where the printers were stashed.

After a few moments, Sam returned with a handful of papers and a half smile on his face. He went back to the computer he was working on and closed out of all his web-pages before heading toward the door with Dean at his heel.

They've gone through this routine a million times. If they found what they needed in the public library, then they'd hush about it till they got back to the motel room…or at least the car.

Sam looked at his surroundings and saw that they had spent longer than he thought in the library. The sky was deep purple, almost completely dark, and the parking-lot was completely empty besides the slick black car that was theirs.

When they reached the Impala, Clay was sprawled out in the back seat fast asleep with all the doors locked. Dean had wondered how the kid got in the car in the first place, because he had the keys with him in his pocket.

Little sneak, Dean thought to himself with a smug smile as he unlocked his door and climbed into the drivers' seat.

He reached over to the passengers' door and let Sam in before starting the engine once Sam's door had closed.

Once they were out of the library parking lot, Dean began to question him.

"So what's up?"

"It's nothing major," Sam warned as he skimmed through the papers again, "but there's some mention here about a Castiel."

"What is it?" Dean asked curiously.

"It's not really clear on that…but this is from a book about angels." Sam replied with a shadow of a smile on his face.

"An angel?" Dean asked with clear disbelief.

Sam nodded as his eyes kept reading the page over and over.

"I thought you said you had _something_!" Dean accused.

"This is something, Dean." Sam defended, still not looking over at him.

"It's a big steaming pile of bull-crap, that's what this is!"

"But what if it isn't -?" Sam began to argue before Dean cut him off angrily.

"It is! You really wanna get into this again, Sam? Last time you said it was angels, it turned out to be a mixed-up spirit! This is probably the same thing or some bad-ass demon."

"I don't think a spirit's powerful enough to burn someones' eyes out, Dean." Sam retorted with an unamused huff.

Not really in the mood to get into a religious debate with his brother, Sam closed the argument. He rolled his eyes at Dean's lack of faith, but didn't say another word about it. He figured he'd run it by Bobby and see what _he_ thought. Bobby was supposed to meet them at the motel tonight, anyway.

He'd been in the hospital with Pamela all day.

"Sam I got a question to ask you." Dean said sounding serious.

Sam noticed that Dean's demeanor changed slightly, from defensive to sad. It was almost as if a switch had flipped.

"What?" Sam demanded.

"A-about four months ago when your abilities started getting stronger…you said that you saw everyone in the room's death." Dean began, it was clear he didn't really want to talk about this time, but he felt he had to know, "You said you saw Pamela's death…but it wouldn't be for a while."

Sam nodded curtly, but didn't respond right away.

Four months ago, Pamela had forced Sam to have a vision…only it took him almost an entire day to climb out of it. And while he was stuck in his own mind, he tapped into his other abilities as well as his visions. At first he saw everyone who was in the room with him at the time die in his mind over and over.

Clay at the time was destined to kill Dean, and then Sam would have shot Clay. But they stopped that just in time.

Pamela on the other hand was different. Her death seemed further away in the vision, because the vision was foggier and not so clear. But he recalled that she wore a pair of sunglasses, and was thrown on top of a dresser, before she was stabbed in the gut by a demon.

Sam wasn't sure when this would happen though. It's been some time now…so it could be soon, or maybe even years from now for all he knew.

"She was stabbed in the stomach by a demon," Sam confirmed, "but I don't know when."

"Was she…blind in this vision?" Dean prodded.

Sam wasn't sure why, but he hadn't really thought about it at the time. But clearly she was blind in his vision. She was wearing sunglasses in a dimly lit room with closed curtains and everything.

"Yes." Sam replied.

"Why didn't you warn us?" Dean wondered out loud, sounding angry.

"I didn't think she was blind at the time!" Sam admitted in his defense, "She wore a pair of sunglasses…but sometimes people just do that!"

"Well we should probably find out when this is gonna happen." Dean said tiredly.

Sam nodded, but didn't reply again.

These days Sam didn't get death visions from being in the same room as someone. Now he could summon a vision of someones fate only while he touched them. Admittedly, he was grateful for that. Because if visions of peoples' deaths came to him every time he'd walk in a crowded room, he'd surely have gone insane.

"What do you wanna do about it?" Sam wondered out loud, sounding agitated, "Wanna go to the hospital right now, see if my vision's any clearer?"

Sam was being half sarcastic of course, which Dean didn't miss. He shook his head in disapproval, but kept his eyes on the road.

Sam turned his head to take a quick glance at the backseat, and saw that their bantering had woken Clay. He was still laying down in the backseat, but his eyes were looking up at Sam curiously.

"I'm sorry." Clay muttered loud enough for both Sam and Dean to hear.

"For what?" Dean asked a little sympathetically.

"Acting like a spoiled brat in the library." Clay elaborated with a mirthless chuckle.

In all honesty, he wasn't that sorry. His dad had been keeping things from him and his uncle, and Clay wanted to know what. He could tell by the way his father carried himself every single day that whatever weight he held on his shoulders wasn't good.

And Clay was too stubborn to just leave it alone.

"It's fine, kiddo." Sam replied, although it didn't sound genuine.

Clay nodded, accepting that he was forgiven. He then turned his head toward the back of his uncles' head, and gave a mental push. But seeing how Dean wasn't like him or Sam, he had no hardcore mental walls for Clay to penetrate.

_"Dean." _Clay said to his uncle without speaking aloud.

He gave Dean a moment when he noticed him visibly flinch, though not enough to draw attention from Sam.

_"What?" _Dean thought, knowing that Clay would hear it.

_"Have you noticed anything…off about dad, lately?" _Clay asked curiously.

A shadow of a smile came to Dean's face as he looked at his brother out of the corner of his eye. Sam seemed to be oblivious to their mental conversation as he looked back and forth between the papers in his hands and out the window.

Looking a little closer though, Dean didn't miss the brooding expression on his brothers' face.

_"Definitely…why kid?" _Dean asked his nephew.

_"He's completely closed up on me," _Clay explained apathetically, like he was trying not to show emotion, _"I can't get any sort of read on him ever…unless he wants me to, which is rare now." _

Yeah, Dean had to admit that, that was pretty odd. When he and Sam took Clay on the road with them, they were always having those private conversations. At times, Dean would even have to remind them that he was sitting right next to them. He learned to notice the looks on their faces when they spoke in silence.

Of course Dean didn't approve. His father told him that he might have to kill Sam because of the abilities the Demon gave him. And every time Sam used his abilities, Dean was reminded of that day he told Sam what their father told him – and how Sam blew up at him.

Sam's and Clay's abilities scared him, in short.

_"I'm gonna keep an eye on him." _Clay assured Dean confidently.

_"I know you will." _Dean replied with a half smile, _"And so will I." _


End file.
